Send in the strings: Violin sent to young Syrian musician

Oxford University has lent a violin from its collection to Aboud Kaplo, a 14-year-old Syrian musician. The violin was restored in Oxford before being sent to Aboud and his family, who fled their home in Aleppo and are now seeking refuge in Lebanon - as are nearly two million other Syrians. The Bate Collection of Musical Instruments, part of Oxford University's Faculty of Music, was contacted by Susie Attwood, a film-maker, violinist and alumna of the Music Faculty. Susie had met Aboud and his parents while filming a documentary at a Syriac Orthodox monastery in Lebanon, where they are now living. She was struck by Aboud's dedication to music, though he had no access to music education, as he watched YouTube videos and practiced on a 'cheap and rattly' child-sized violin. She wondered whether Oxford could do anything, and Andy Lamb, curator of the Bate Collection, was immediately keen to help. The Bate Collection holds more than 2,000 instruments which date from medieval times to the modern day.